TREATMENT FOR APRAXIA OF SPEECH - EFFECTS OF TARGETING SOUND GROUPS

A multiple baseline design was used to assess the effects of a treatme nt programme for sound errors with a speaker with moderately severe ap raxia of speech (AOS) and Broca's aphasia. Treatment consisted of trai ning correct production of three groups of sounds (i.e. stops, fricati ves, and glides/liquids) in sentences containing multiple exemplars of those sounds. The treatment combined modelling, repetition, integral stimulation, Visual cueing, and response-contingent feedback and was a pplied sequentially to the groups of sounds. Acquisition effects of tr eatment were measured by evaluating production of trained sentences in probes. Response generalization effects were assessed by examining so und production in untrained sentences containing exemplars of trained sounds and untrained sentences containing untrained sounds. Treatment resulted in improved production for trained sound groups, with respons e generalization closely following acquisition effects. Generalization across sound groups was negligible. Additionally, measures of sentenc e duration were conducted for sentences produced in two baseline, one mid-treatment, and two end-of-treatment probes. Statistically signific ant reductions in duration were noted at the completion of treatment i n comparison to baseline measures.